Selangor Fiasco: PKR Kajang rep quits, Anwar to contest

Amid the raging speculation that Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim may be ousted, a state seat is vacated by its incumbent.

Kajang assemblyperson Lee Chin Cheh tendered his resignation after meeting with his party supremo Anwar Ibrahim this afternoon.

Speculation is rife that the ex-Gerakan leader is paving the way for Anwar to contest the state seat in order to replace Khalid as menteri besar.

In a text message to Malaysiakini, Selangor senior exco and state PAS commissioner Iskandar Samad confirmed that Anwar would be contesting.

According to Iskandar, he was informed of this by PKR secretary-general Saifuddin Nasution.

Meanwhile, Selangor Speaker Hannah Yeoh announced that Lee had vacated his seat but declined to comment on whether it was related to the differences between Khalid and Anwar.

She said Lee had submitted his resignation personally at her office.

Despite being repeatedly pressed, Yeoh refused to comment further on the resignation and told reporters to ask Lee instead.

"(For) any reason, you have to ask him, my role as a speaker is to notify.

"So I received the letter (that) he had resigned with immediate effect," she said during the 10-minute press conference at the state legislative building in Shah Alam.

On the by-election, Yeoh said she would send a letter to the Election Commission tomorrow and it was up to the commission to decide the date.

Asked if she was surprised by Lee's decision, Yeoh replied:"Of course."

She also declined to comment on whether Anwar would be contesting.

"I don't want to talk about candidacy and I don't want to comment on rumours. It's premature to speculate. As of today, the seat is vacant. That's all.

"This is a PKR seat. PKR should be the party to announce the candidate," she stressed.

Earlier today, Anwar had denied that he would be replacing Khalid as the menteri besar while the latter too dismissed talk of stepping down

Commenting on the issue, a PKR source said that the party's partners in Pakatan Rakyat were kept in the dark about this move in order to prevent the matter from leaking.

However, he conceded that the development could draw a backlash but insisted that it was necessary.

"Anwar has to step in to diffuse the tension between Khalid and (PKR deputy president) Azmin Ali. The fact is, only Anwar can do it," he added.

The source also confirmed that the PKR leadership was upset with Khalid over certain recent developments like the astronomical pay hike and water issues.

Msiakini